The Name of My Sword
by Quiet Wyatt
Summary: Ichigo wrote on a piece of paper and held it out... "If you want to get stronger, this is the man to see." I took the paper from him. On it was an address. Under the address was a name. That name read: Urahara Kisuke OC Centered
1. Beginnings! A Shinigami is Born

Beginnings! A Shinigami is Born!

'_So this is Tokyo' _I thought to myself, starring out the hotel window at the pouring rain. Not surprisingly, I had been placed in the closest, and cheapest, hotel to the airport. In fact, the view from my window was of the airport itself. The loud rumbling clatter of the jets arriving and departing shook the room every few minutes, and made any thoughts of sleep next to impossible. I discovered this because I had been lying on the bed, trying to block out the sounds of an unfortunate couple who had either been forced here because everywhere else was full or had no knowledge of the area, and had foolishly decided to stay the night. And, since sleep was impossible, they were making the most of their marriage, if you catch my drift.

'_This is what you wanted isn't it? You just HAD to be an exchange student this year.' _Actually, I was surprised that I was selected at all. Only a sophomore and nowhere near the top of my class, I had beaten out several hopeful seniors and stomped on the dreams of a few juniors. But whatever, I didn't have to see them for a year. My first night in Japan, and I was stuck in this shithole, listening to the sweet,_ sweet _sounds of jet engines, rain and sex. Leaning my head against the window, I watched the few people still on the sidewalk scurry for cover or their cars. And that's when I saw her. Illuminated by a streetlight was a young girl, who was making no move to escape the rain. As I watched her, she raised her eyes to mine and revealed a bloody gash that covered her forehead and looked like it was deep enough to pierce her brain.

I froze, my eyes fixated on her. And that's when I noticed my second strange occurrence of the evening. _No one_ was stopping to help her; as I watched, a policeman walked right past her without as much as a glance in her direction. I continued to watch her as I stifled a yawn. I was tired after that long flight, and getting to bed would be damn near impossible what with the jets and the fornicating couple next door. I reached up and pulled the cord and let it go, lowering the blinds, blocking the girl from view. I turned and was halfway to the pathetic excuse for a bed that the hotel offered when a blue flash illuminated the dark room for an instant before relinquishing to the darkness. I swung my head around and gave the window a good long look. '_Should I?_' Maybe something totally awesome was happening and I was missing it. I turned to the bed again; maybe if I took some Nyquil or something I'd be able to sleep.

After a good twenty seconds of weighing the two decisions against each other, curiosity got the better of me. I about faced and almost ran to the window. I pulled up the blinds and stuck my head up against the glass. And saw the third strangest thing since I landed. In roughly the same place as the girl stood a tall man in a black robe; he was holding something in his hand, but I couldn't see it clearly. He shifted his feet slightly and revealed the sword in his hand. As I watched, he slowly raised his gaze to mine and gave me a long calculating glance. I just starred right back at this strange black robed man before tearing my eyes away and closing them for several seconds. When I opened them, the street below was devoid of life. I glanced up and down the sidewalk, but the strange little girl and man had vanished. Yawning, I lowered the blinds again and headed for the bathroom, deciding to have some Nyquil after all.

-----

_I've been having the same dream for a while now. Whenever I close my eyes, it's the same dark that you would expect. No lights, no color…but that's just how it starts. In my dream, I don't know where I am exactly; I can't see anything in front or behind me. All I can do is slowly walk forward, feeling my way around. Everywhere I turn, something pokes, scratches, or hurts me in some way. The injuries are small, but they ache and burn as I continue to blunder my way through, all the while sustaining more tiny scratches that burn horribly despite their size before I finally collapse under the pain, and then wake up,_

-----

I glance around what's to be my exchange home for the next year. It's nothing to write home about, but it's a damn sight nicer than that hotel. Actually, I probably will write home about it, seeing as how my real parents will want to know how I'm doing. My exchange parents are a middle aged couple, the Tanakas. My exchange mother, Misaki Tanaka, is small in stature but loud in option and voice. She wasted no time in welcoming me to my new home, offering me something to eat, and hitting me over the head for forgetting to remove my shoes when I walked in. My exchange father, Itsuki Tanaka, is the polar opposite of his wife. He keeps to himself more, rarely speaks up, but is as tall as a tree. After several failed attempts to get him to humorously bow multiply times to me, Misaki took me to a table, sat me down, and demanded I eat.

-----

Two hours later, at dinner, I was introduced to the third and final member of my new family. Mizuki Tanaka was ten years old, with big blue eyes, shiny black hair, and she does not like me. Well, she just hasn't spoken to me once except to ask me to pass her something, but her voice had undertones of _Just who do you think you are?_ Well, I starred right back at her. Misaki, of course, noticed the building tension right away.

"Mizuki, this is Kai Ferguson, the exchange student we were telling you about. He's from the United States. He's going to be living with us; won't that be fun? He'll be like a new big brother…"

This was apparently the wrong thing to say, because Mizuki threw her spoon down and ran from the table. Even as she ran up the stairs, I could hear her reply.

"I don't want a new brother! I want the old one!"

Misaki looked over at me. "I'm sorry. Zuki's big brother died six months ago. It's been hard for her"

That got my attention. "What happened tae him?"

Misaki's eyes lowered. "He was killed when the store he was working at was robbed. He was shot twice in the stomach and died in the hospital later." There was an uncomfortable silence that Itsuki broke.

"She'll warm up to you, Kai. Give her some time. Would you like to see your room?"

"Sure."

-----

I followed Itsuki along the hall on the upper floor. As we walked, a door slightly ahead of us inched open, but as soon as the occupant spotted us, she let out a squeal and slammed the door. Itsuki raised his hand.

"Mizuki…"

He was cut off by the click of the lock. He signed.

"She must really be mad. She never locks the door."

We walked in silence for a few more feet before Itsuki opened the door in front of us and walked in, myself at his heels. In terms of rooms, it was about as large as the one I had back in the States. There was a dresser and a bed, the rest bare. Itsuki turned to me.

"I know it's not much, but we didn't know what you were like, so we decided to let you decorate yourself. Alright?" I cracked a half smile up at my pseudo-father.

"Yeah. Looks like I'll have tae hit a few stores. I'll pretty it up, don't ya fret."

Itsuki scratched his head and then shrugged. "Whatever makes you happy."

-----

"What did you do?"

I turned around, having just finished taping up my last poster. Mizuki was standing in my doorway, her eyes wide and shocked. I took two steps and turned down the volume on my laptop, which was playing Iron Maiden at an ungodly high volume. I spun to face her.

"What can I do for ya, lass?"

Mizuki rounded on me.

"What are you doing to this room? This is my brother's room!"

I was at a loss for words. Should I ask her what her brother had been like? Should I say I understand what losing a sibling was like? Should I tell her that my own sister had drowned? I was brought back to reality when a heard a ripping sound. Mizuki was tearing down one of my posters; this one of the band Nightwish. I walked over and grabbed her arm.

"Just whit do ya think you'll doin'?"

She shook my hand off and swirled to face me, her hair tickling my nose as it flow by.

"This room is nothing like the room I knew! Now take it down." If looks could kill her's would have sent me straight to Hell. She gestured to all of the various posters on the walls. "Now take them all down!"

I held up my hands. "I'll nae take doon my posters, but I ken what you're sayin'."

Mizuki signed and started to slowly walk towards the door. Halfway there, she turned to me.

"Why do you talk that way?"

In response, I sat down on the bed and patted it. Mizuki, who still looked like she wanted to kill me, took two tentative steps towards me and then, making up her mind, covered the rest of the distance and flopped down on my bed. I started to talk.

"I wis born in Scotland in a place called Lenie. It's a small toon along the Loch – "

"The what?"

"Do ya nae ken O' Loch Ness?"

Mizuki giggled. "You talk funny, Kai-san."

I raised my eyebrows. "Not _Kai-kun_ yet?"

"Not by a long shot."

"But ya ken o' the Loch, aye?"

"Aye?"

"Means _yes_."

"Aye, I _ken o' the Loch._ It's where that monster lives, right."

"Ya insolent wee – Makin' fun o' my accent now?"

"Imitation is the highest form of flattery. Is there really a monster there?"

"Well, nae in my opinion." Her face fell. "But I'm nae learned enough to say. Who knows; anyway, I moved to the States a little over two years ago. I wis nae there long enough to lose my accent before I wis on a plane here. So how about it, am I welcome?"

She pretended to think about it. "My brother used to let me decorate his room…" She gave me a hopeful look.

"I thought ya said I wis nae your brother?"

"You aren't. But you should let me anyway."

Part of me was almost aching to let her run rampant and decorate to her heart's content as my own sister had done to my room back home, but part of me was hesitant to let her get too close, just in case something happened, for both our sakes. But…

I sighed.

-----

_Tonight it's the same. The same dark. The same burning and aching scratches and pokes. I can feel myself getting weaker as I stagger across this shadow land. But something is different…I can hear a little…see a little…the ground beneath my feet is uneven and covered with something hard and sharp and jagged that sticks into my feet. Everywhere I feel with my hands I am greeted with razor sharp…ash is a word I might use to describe it. I hear my faint footsteps as they slowly ponder onwards. I feel something else…not physically…but in my mind…something surrounding me….oh god something's behind me! It's right behind me!_

-----

Mizuki drags me down the street toward a little shop that looks like the kind of shop where little sisters always drag their, unwilling, brothers. Looking back, I guess I'll regret my decision, but who knows. Maybe some good will come of it. Mizuki's voice snaps me out of my daydream.

"Yuzu!"

She begins pulling me towards a waving girl who looks to be about her age. Walking slightly behind her is an orange haired guy about my age. He, like me, is starring off in a random direction and seems to be a million miles away. Mizuki pulls away from me and runs over to her friend and immediately starts jabbering. She indicates herself, Yuzu, me, Orange-Hair, the sky and the shop where she was taking me. Sighing, I walk over to them, hoping she'll be fast. No such luck. Orange-Hair looks as bored as I am; he's looking around, like he's searching for something. He looks up at me and walks where I'm standing next to Mizuki.

"Yo."

I just nod. Orange-Hair keeps going.

"Friends with Mizuki? Then get used to seeing Yuzu. Those two are together aot."

Orange-Hair is quiet for a second and then extends his hand.

"I'm Kurosaki Ichigo."

A/N Ok, this is my second attempt at a Bleach story. I have this idea in my head, and I'm trying my best to get a good story going to try to share the pure epicness with everyone. I wish I could draw because I would draw a comic instead. But I can't draw worth shit. So I'm trying to write it. If you leave comments, please be gentle with you critisims. Also, Kia Ferguson, the character whose eyes this story is told through, has a Scottish accent. If it helps, think of the way Groundskeeper Willie in the Simpsons talks.


	2. Journal of Kia Ferguson

Journal of Kai Ferguson

Monday September 1st 6:00 PM  
Listening to Music – Grow Up by Simple Plan

Today was my first day of school and the first day of school after the summer break for everyone else. Even though I was a sophomore back home, I am considered a freshman here, probably because I'm so young. Well, my mom put me in kindergarten a year early, so I guess the system here is right. Anyway, that kid Kurosaki Ichigo is in my class, so he showed me where to go and what books to get. He's even been helping me catch up. His little sister, Yuzu, is Mizuki's best friend; she's actually been over for dinner quite a few times now. I've been seeing…I don't want to say ghosts, because that makes me sound crazy, right? Anyway, I've been seeing more and more of them. Some are visited by a man in a black kimono and some are left alone. And one was attacked by something that I couldn't quite make out. Whatever it was, I could _feel_ it; it made the air around me seem thicker and I actually had to take deep slow breaths to get any air at all. Come to think of it, that's almost exactly how I feel around Kurosaki: like something's constricting me. What is he?

Monday September 1st 8:00 PM  
Listening to Music – Journey to the End - Windir

We had a new student in school today. Besides me, I mean. His name is Shinji Hirako. Apparently he makes a hobby of writing everything backwards. Or something like that; I wasn't really paying him any heed. I was ogling the girl who sits next to me. I think her name is Inoue. Actually, Kurosaki, Inoue, and some big Mexican kid named Sado ran out of class today during 1st period. What are they up too? Right now I feel something in the air. It's almost like there's a gas and I'm the only one who knows about it. Mizuki's lounging in _**my**_bean bag chair, reading some magazine. I feel as if maybe some (thing? one?) of great power is nearby. Does that sound stupid?

Tuesday September 2nd 4:00  
Listening to Music – Creek Mary's Blood – Nightwish

Mizuki really seems to be warming up to me. Well, she hasn't tried to tear down all of my posters, but at what cost? A corner of my room is now devoted to "Chappy", some cartoon rabbit that she adores. Her brother is still a sore subject with her. I brought it up accidentally when we were walking home and she ran off ahead. She was in her room when I got home. I saw Shinji talking to Kurosaki again this morning. Do those two know each other or something? Something about that Shinji doesn't feel right either. I actually thought I saw him running across the sky holding something. I must be losing my mind.

Tuesday September 2nd 6:00 PM  
Listening to Music – This Maniac's in Love with You – Alice Cooper

I wasn't planning on writing more today. But I can tell that something is happening at the park. I don't know how; I just know. I keep asking Mizuki if she feels like anything is wrong, but she says that she doesn't. I don't know what's going on, but something is happening. I looked out the window and almost knocked my laptop off the desk I was so surprised. Something is going on in the sky. It looks like...something is being sucked out of this world and whatever is waiting at the park is doing it.

Wednesday September 3rd 3:00 AM

Woke up about an hour ago. Dreams are getting worse. I can feel the presence hunting me, but I still can't see it. Everywhere I look; everywhere I step, I feel this…discomfort…drained…like something is sapping my energy. I can feel my skin parting under razor sharp ash and I can feel the blood being…almost pulled from my veins. I can hear something whispering in the dark. I can hear it sniffing and breathing and growling. I don't know what it is, but it is terrifying. Oh God What Is Happening To Me???

Wednesday September 3rd 11:00  
Listening to Music – Tyranny of Steel – Iron Savior

Saw Kurosaki walking around looking dejected today. Said hello to him, but he just kind of glanced my way and kept walking. He's covered in bandages. Don't know what his deal is. Tried to talk to him all day, but no response from him. Until his friends came to visit. They showed up after school. Truth be told, I actually felt these guys before they walked in. Surprised that Kurosaki didn't. Usually he's more intuitive then me. Anyways, there was some guy with red hair, a woman with the biggest breasts I've ever seen, some bald guy with a wooden sword, a pretty boy, and some white haired elementary student. Surprisingly, the white haired kid, was the one who I "felt" the strongest. He also seemed to notice me. He glanced my way as he entered the class room, but didn't say anything to me. But that wasn't the strangest part. Some girl came in through the window and _kicked_ Kurosaki. And then she hit him. He went all limp for a second and she grabbed him by the shirt and dragged him off, but _his body was still in the classroom!_ What is Happening to ME!

Thursday September 3rd 4:00 PM

I can't believe the nerve of that Kurosaki! He had NO right to talk to me like that. Yes, he did save me, but even still…ah! Maybe I should start from the beginning. After that really unusual day at school, I was walking home when I was attacked. I didn't so much hear or see my attacker as I could _feel_ them. The air all around me felt heavy and it became very hard to move. I found myself having to take great big gasps of air. All I knew was that I had to get away from this thing that was hunting me. Long story short, Kurosaki was the one who saved me. He suddenly appeared out of nowhere, dressed in a black kimono and carrying a sword as big as he was. After running around and swinging that humongous sword for a bit, he picked me up and gave a brief explanation of who he really was. And then he wrote on a piece of paper and held it out to me

"If you want to get stronger, this is the man to see."

The name on that piece of paper was Kisuke Urahara.


End file.
